THE ISLAND WOLF - EPISODE 71

Prince Dakar’s face had a plague on it. It was something awful, something very alien to his body. Camper was terrified by just staring at his best friend’s face. What was happening to Dakar? How did he get infected by this thing on his face? Prince Dakar had a smile on his face—a genuine smile! Camper was more than surprised as he gawked at him with his jaw dropped.
They were in Prince Dakar’s man cave, outside of the palace and closed to the hills at the outskirts of Remus. They came there often to unwind and stay away from the hustle and bustle of the kingdom.

Camper coughed and heaved a sigh.
“Ehm—Dakar, what’s with your face today?” he managed to ask. Dakar looked at him and carried his wine glass while still looking at him.
”There’s something with my face?” he asked with a tone that said he had no interest in whatever Camper wanted to say. Like he was bored.
“You are smiling genuinely. When was the last you smiled from your heart and not a wicked grin?”
“Is that an insult?” he finally looked at him and tilted his head. Camper stared at him and scoffed. Dakar just grinned and gulped down the whole content of his glass.
“I’m trying to figure out what’s changing. You even took it easy with the new concubine this morning. Ever since then, you’ve been in such a good mood. Is there something you’re up to?” Camper asked with raised brows. Dakar poured more red wine in his glass and heaved a sigh.
“I feel alive,” he answered.
“What is behind this new feeling?” Camper asked again. Dakar sipped from his drink and smiled while running his fingers gently through his long hair. How could he tell Camper that it was Avril who was making him this happy? She had slept on his bed and he almost hadn’t slept at all. He would prop up on his elbow and gaze at her peaceful face as she slept like an angel. He had missed that face, wished he could behold it again. So when he finally got the chance, he couldn’t get enough of it. He literally watched her till dawn and made a portrait of her sleeping with her tucked under his comforter. He would show her one day… just one fateful day. A smile played on his lips as he remembered her beautiful face. She had full yet slender cheeks, large eyes and long lashes. Her lips were heart shaped and very pink. Her face was oval and her wavy brown hair adorned her well.

“My Avril,” he muttered to himself, oblivious of Camper’s presence.
“What?” came his best friend’s voice. Dakar frowned at him as if he was angry of being snapped out of his fantasy.
“Your Avril? Avril? Isn’t that the former name of Fiorella?”
“That was her former name?” Dakar asked with a deep frown.
“Yes. So, why are you muttering her name?”
“I didn’t mutter her name. You seem to forget that my winery is called A Free,” Dakar retorted. He bit his lip at the thought of his winery. He was such a stupid lover boy when he first arrived in Remus after his exile. He missed Avril too much and couldn’t say a thing about her to anyone. So after his father gifted him a large vineyard as his welcome home gift, he named his winery A Free. It had a significance. He was a free wolf now, but he was without Avril. The names too rhymed, so he kept it that way.

“I have a request, Dakar,” Camper said, changing the topic much to Dakar’s relief.
“Yes?”
“It’s about Fiorella,” Camper stated and Dakar’s gaze narrowed at him.
“Can I please visit her often? I need lots of help from her,” he continued after his friend didn’t say a word.

Dakar bit the insides of his cheeks. He couldn’t say yes, he couldn’t say no either. This was not the first time Camper asked to be close to his concubines. He was a flirt, and loved the company of women. Dakar didn’t care too much about most of his concubines so Camper was free to flirt with them but never bed them…never. So, he asking to be close to Avril meant he wanted to flirt more and say cheesy lines to her.

“No,” Dakar said amidst gritted teeth. Camper’s lips tugged up in a smug smile. He was getting the answer he was seeking.

__
“We just met briefly last year in Milan. Yes, at a hotel in Milan and we kind of had a one night stand. I fell for him but he never cared about it. He left without even saying goodbye,” Avril lied to Aida and Gia. She knew the lie was good, but why was her heart beating so fast? Or was it her conscience pricking her for lying about her and Dakar?

“My lady, you’re a terrible liar,” Aida said with wide eyes at her. Avril heaved a deep sigh and slumped into one of the sofas in the living room.
“It’s left to you to believe it or not. I have said the truth,” she protested as she was shoving out hair from her face. Her hair had grown longer and she needed a bit of trimming.
“I am hungry. I wanna eat,” Nana said in a slightly high voice as she got on her feet. The maidens averted their gazes to her. What she was actually trying to do was to take their minds of Avril and the prince.
“But you already—” Aida was trying to protest.
“—Shut up, you! I’m hungry!” Nana barked at Aida who turned pink with embarrassment immediately. Avril didn’t like the way Nana yelled at Aida, but she didn’t protest because she knew what Nana was trying to do.

They soon left with her friends to the kitchen, leaving just Avril. Her thoughts flew all over the place. So, she was going to meet Dakar again in the evening. Would he touch her? She believed well that he had lost his memories and was desperate for him to regain them. But what if he didn’t? And what if she continues being ordinary to him? God, she wouldn’t bear being an ordinary woman.

“Goodness! Your thoughts are all over the place!” Verona’s voice quipped through the living room. Avril looked ahead at the door and saw the red haired girl standing while leaning against the wall with her hand propped up.
“What-what do you mean?” Avril asked.
“Fiorella, this isn’t the human world. We over here have special abilities and reading of minds is one,” Verona answered and walked fully into the room. Avril’s heart stopped beating for a moment.
“You read my mind?”
“Didn’t mean to. But your thoughts were too jumbled up and loud. You’re too vulnerable, Fiorella. Lock up your mind.”

Verona sat on the same sofa with her and pulled out her phone. This time, the gothic girl was wearing a plain black dress, had her hair bangs in a black beanie and wore no jewelry today at all. Even her piercings were empty.

“How can I do that? I don’t want people reading my mind,” Avril stated.

“I can help. But first, Ñiraka is at the general garden. Wanna go do some shîtty thing to her? I heard how you got her pretty angry few hours ago,” that was from Verona.

“Yes. She was provoking,” Avril answered. Verona grinned.

“Let us go provoke her. After that, you and I are going to talk about the Prince,” she peered into her eyes as she said her last sentence.

“Talk about me? For what?” Dakar’s very deep and cold voice sounded in the room. How did he get there and why?